Water basketball apparatus

ABSTRACT

Water basketball apparatus including a backboard and standard assembly which can readily be knocked down and packaged for shipping, and which can be assembled by the user to provide a mobile unit that can be moved anywhere around a swimming pool and fixed firmly in place. The standard includes triangular legs of bent tubing connected by braces and having resilient feet. The legs may be held down by weights.

United States. Patent 1191 Weinhagen et al.

111 I 3,743,286 1451 July 3,1973

[ WATER BASKETBALL APPARATUS [76] Inventors: Frederick B. Weinhagen, l8 Elizabeth Street, S. Burlington, Vt. 05401, G. Woodbury Weinhagen,

2840 NE. 26th St., Fort Lauderdale,

Fla.33305 22 Filed; Nov. 3, 1971 211 Appl.No.: 195,117

[52] US. Cl. 273/15 R, 273/105 R, 272/1 B Chapman 273/15 R 3,602,504 8/1971 3,427,025 2/1969 Procter 273/l.5 R 3,427,026 2/1969 Mahoney 273/ 1.5 A

FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 908,055 10/ 1962 Great Britain, 273/ 1.5 R

Primary EXamiher-Richard C. Pinkham Assistant Examiner-Paul E. Shapiro Attorney-John H. Oltman et al.

[ 5 7] ABSTRACT Water basketball apparatus including a backboard and standard assembly which can readily be knocked down and packaged for shipping, and which can be assembled by the user to provide a mobile unit that can be moved anywhere around a swimming pool and fixed firmly in place. The standard includes triangular legs of bent tubing connected by braces and having resilient feet. The legs may be held down by weights.

3 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures Patented July 3, 1973 2 Sheets-Sheet l x O O Liim 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented July 3, 1973 INVENTORS FREDERICK B. WEIAHAEN. G. OODBURY, WEINHAQ'N.

WATER BASKETBALL APPARATUS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to water basketball apparatus, and more particularly to a novel basketball backboard and standard assembly with which a game of basketball can be played in a swimming pool.

Although it has been proposed to provide equipment with which basketball could be played in a swimming pool, there has been a need for a basketball backboard and standard assembly which is simple and durable in construction, one that is economical and easy to make, and one which can be conveniently used along side a swimming pool and of a mobile nature allowing it to be moved any place around the swimming pool when desired. Known equipment has been bulky and difficult to break down for packaging and shipping.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides water basketball apparatus for installation next to a swimming pool which is especially designed to be knocked down for packaging and shipping in a shipping carton, and which can be readily assembled by the user and placed anywhere around the edge of a swimming pool. In a particular embodiment, the standard includes triangular legs of bent tubing which will stack in a shipping carton, and which can readily be assembled with braces between them to a basketball backboard to support the backboard a predetermined distance above the water at the side of a swimming pool. The standard has resilient feet to absorb the pounding of a basketball, and it can be anchored in place by means of weights such as sand bags.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a knockdown type of construction for a water basketball backboard and standard assembly.

Another object of the invention is to provide water basketball apparatus with parts which can readily be stacked in a shipping carton to provide a compact package, and which can also be readily assembled by the user and installed alongside a swimming pool.

Another object of the invention is to provide a completely mobile backboard and standard assembly which can be moved any place around the edge of a swimming pool and which can be fixed in place by means of weights.

A further object of the invention is to provide a backboard and standard assembly with resilient bumper feet to prevent the standard from sliding or marring the pool patio surface and to render the standard almost n iseless, plus giving the standard enough flexibility to absorb the constant pounding of the basketball without permitting thestandard to move from its set position.

Among the other objects of the invention are to provide water basketball apparatus which is exceptionally simple and durable in construction, which is economical and easy to manufacture and easy to package for shipping, and which can be assembled readily to provide a mobile unit that can be moved around the edge of a pooland fixed where desired.

Otherobjects of this invention will appear from the following description and appended claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification wherein like reference characters designate correspondingparts in the several views.

ON THE DRAWINGS Before explaining the present invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and arrangement of parts illustrated in the accompanying drawings, since the invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or carried out in various ways. I Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation.

AS SHOWN ON THE DRAWINGS The water basketball apparatus 10 includes a backboard 12 and a standard 14. The backboard 12 may be made of plywood, composition board, plastic or fiberglass by way of example, and in a preferred embodiment, it measures about 2 by 3 feet. The backboard may vary in size from one model to another. The backboard is constructed or treated so as to be resilient to whatever weather conditions are expected and so that it will have a long useful life.

The standard 14 includes two legs 16 and 18, each 0 which is a triangular member made of bent tubing. The tubing is preferably made of aluminum. The triangles are preferably right triangles. Leg 16 has a horizontal base side 20, a vertical side 22 and a hypotenuse side 24. Leg 18 has equivalent sides 26., 28 and 30 which are best seen in FIG. 1. The upper ends of sides 22 and 28 have a pair of openings which match openings in the backboard through which bolts 32 extend. Similarly, the upper ends of sides 24 and 30 have openings which match openings in the backboard through which other bolts 32 extend. All of the bolts 32 may be the same, and all have nuts for tightening them. The bolts may readily be removed by unscrewing the nuts so that the legs 16 and 18 can be separated from the backboard 12. The legsand backboard can be stacked in a carton with the length'of the legs matching the widest dimension of the backboard so as to provide a compact package for shipment.

The basket 34 is attached to the front side of the backboard 12 with suitable bolts. The basket may also 'be removed from the backboard and stacked in the carton for shipment ofthe apparatus. The basket consists of a hoop with a flange perpendicular to the hoop and netting suspended from the hoop. The bolts go through the flange.

Extending between the base sides 20 and 26 of the legs 16 and 18, there are two cross-braces 36 and 38 which maybe straight tubing members (see FIG. 3). These cross braces 36 and 38 are fastened to. the base sides 20 and 26 along with resilient feet 40, 42, 44 and 46. These feet provide a [four-point support for the standard.

The manner in which one foot 40 and one crossbrace 36 are fastened to the base side 20 is shown in FIG. 5, and it will be understood that the other end of brace 36 and both ends of brace 38 are fastened in the same manner. The foot 40 is a resilient, inverted cup made of rubber, plastic or other resilient material. The head 43 of a bolt 47 tits in a recess 45 inside the cup. The shank of the bolt 47 extends through the solid portion 48 of the cup and passes through aligned openings in the tubular base side 20 of leg 16. The bolt 4'7 also passes through aligned openings 50 and 52 at one end of the cross-brace 36. The upper end of the bolt 47 is threaded, and a nut and washer 54 and 56 are put on the upper end of the bolt, and nut 56 being turned down tight to hold the cross-brace 36 and the foot 40 firmly against opposite sides of the base member 20. The feet and cross-braces can be removed from the legs 16 and 18 in order to completely break down the standard for packing and shipping. The feet, being resilient, absorb some of the shock of the ball hitting the backboard when the apparatus is in use without permitting the standard to move from its set position. They also render the standard almost noiseless and prevent the standard from sliding in a manner which might mar the surface of the pool patio. 1

When the apparatus is knocked down for packaging and shipping, the backboard 12, the basket 34, the legs 16 and 18, cross-braces 36 and 38, and feet 40-46 are all separate pieces which, together with the various bolts, are all stacked inside the carton to provide a compact package. The user can easily assemble these parts to form the complete water basketball apparatus with only the simplest of instructions.

When the water basketball apparatus is installed at the side of a pool in the manner shown in FIG. ll, it is desirable to provide weights on the legs 16 and 18 to further assure that the standard will not slip. Weights 60 and 62 in the form of sand bags filled with sand may be placed across the braces 36 and 38 in the manner shown in FIG. 1. The total weight of these sand bags may be about 50 pounds and this will provide sufficient weight to hold the apparatus in its set position. The sand bags, of course, may be shipped empty.

Pipe plugs such as 64 (FIG. may be placed in the open ends of all tubing to avoid rough edges. A total of eight plugs are used in a preferred embodiment. The bolts and nuts are preferably of the round heat type to prevent a harmful protruding bolt which could cause injury and which also will prevent the puncturing of the sand bags when they are used to anchor the stand. The two sand bags are designed from durable, all weather canvas.

Thus, the invention provides a complete water basketball apparatus which is exceptionally simple and durable, and which is of a mobile nature allowing it to be moved any place around a pool. The apparatus can be completely broken down for packaging and shipping and the parts can be removed from the carton and assembled simply by the user to provide a complete apparatus ready for installation at the side of a pool.

The standard .of the apparatus is designed in such a shape as to allow stacking of the various parts of the standard in a carton, and the legs are of the appropriate size to mount the goal or hoop approximately 2-% feet above the water. When the standard is properly anchored with weights such as sand bags, it will maintain its fixed position and withstand the constant pounding of a basketball.

The standard has resilient feet which are attached to the bottom of the legs to prevent the standard from sliding or marring the pool patio surface. These feet also render the standard almost noiseless, plus giving the standard enough flexibility to absorb the constant pounding of the basketball without permitting the standard to move from its set position. The standard should have a long useful life.

The apparatus can be used in a basketball game, or as an aid for practicing shots to improve the users skill at regular basketball.

Having thus described our invention, we claim:

1. Water basketball apparatus comprising, a backboard, a goal detachably mounted on said backboard, a pair of parallel legs attached to said backboard for supporting the goal above the surface of the water at the side of a pool in position for playing water basketball, each of said legs comprising a one-piece tube bent into a right triangular shape having a horizontal base side, a vertical side and a hypotenuse side all in the same plane, said vertical side of each leg lying substantially in the plane of said backboard and having an upper end detachably fastened to said backboard, said hypotenuse side of each leg having an upper end detachably fastened to said backboard above the corresponding vertical side, said upper ends being removable from said backboard so that said backboard and said legs may be stacked for shipment with said legs having a length and width not substantially greater than the corresponding dimensions of said backboard, a pair of cross braces extending between said base sides and detachably fastened thereto to retain said legs with the planes thereof parallel to each other, said cross braces having ends lying on top of said base sides, a pair of resilient feet lying under and supporting each of said base sides to provide four point support for said legs, each of said feet comprising an inverted resilient cup having a circular bottom for engaging the ground to hold the apparatus stationary but allowing the same to be picked up and moved, a bolt extending upward through said cup and said base leg and an overlying end of one of said cross braces, said bolt having a head recessed upwardly in said cup and an upper threaded end projecting above said overlying end, and a nut screwed onto said upper end of said bolt against said overlying end to retain said base side and-said overlying end and said cup in a sandwiched assembly which can be dismantled for shipment of the apparatus by removing said bolt downwardly, and weight means for said cross braces for holding the apparatus down.

2. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which each of said cross braces comprises a tube.

3. The apparatus as claimed in claim 2 in which said weight means comprises at least one sand bag.

a a a a 

1. Water basketball apparatus comprising, a backboard, a goal detachably mounted on said backboard, a pair of parallel legs attached to said backboard for supporting the goal above the surface of the water at the side of a pool in position for playing water basketball, each of said legs comprising a onepiece tube bent into a riGht triangular shape having a horizontal base side, a vertical side and a hypotenuse side all in the same plane, said vertical side of each leg lying substantially in the plane of said backboard and having an upper end detachably fastened to said backboard, said hypotenuse side of each leg having an upper end detachably fastened to said backboard above the corresponding vertical side, said upper ends being removable from said backboard so that said backboard and said legs may be stacked for shipment with said legs having a length and width not substantially greater than the corresponding dimensions of said backboard, a pair of cross braces extending between said base sides and detachably fastened thereto to retain said legs with the planes thereof parallel to each other, said cross braces having ends lying on top of said base sides, a pair of resilient feet lying under and supporting each of said base sides to provide four point support for said legs, each of said feet comprising an inverted resilient cup having a circular bottom for engaging the ground to hold the apparatus stationary but allowing the same to be picked up and moved, a bolt extending upward through said cup and said base leg and an overlying end of one of said cross braces, said bolt having a head recessed upwardly in said cup and an upper threaded end projecting above said overlying end, and a nut screwed onto said upper end of said bolt against said overlying end to retain said base side and said overlying end and said cup in a sandwiched assembly which can be dismantled for shipment of the apparatus by removing said bolt downwardly, and weight means for said cross braces for holding the apparatus down.
 2. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which each of said cross braces comprises a tube.
 3. The apparatus as claimed in claim 2 in which said weight means comprises at least one sand bag. 